


The Shorter Way

by Tabata



Series: Leoverse [306]
Category: Glee
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:54:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29520462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tabata/pseuds/Tabata
Summary: Leo has been invited to participate to a short story challenge and he's about to drop a bomb
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Leoverse [306]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/30541
Kudos: 2





	The Shorter Way

**Author's Note:**

> **WARNING:** This story is a **spin-off sequel** for Broken Heart Syndrome. This means that, despite not being properly set after BHS (but that's only because BHS is probably never going to have a proper ending and we'll keep talking about these people forever), it depicts things happening way late in the 'verse, and that may be on varying degrees of spoiler.
> 
> Written for: Lande di Fandom's COW-T #11 (Week 2 - M2)  
> prompt: A Very Short Story (Ernest Hemingway)

Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.

Unlike most of these old sayings people mindlessly repeat every day that don't really apply to anyone anymore, Leo must admit that this one is true. Or at least it's true for him, which amounts to saying that it is true in general.

As a kid, he wanted to be a lot of things. A pilot, an astronaut, a lion tamer, a dog trainer. He would go through phases, one weirder than the other, depending on his latest obsession. And later, when it was time to go to college and really choose a career path, he stubbornly refused to attend any college that would require him to leave Lima – because that would have meant living too far away from Blaine – and so his choices were reduced to either study to become a lawyer, a medical assistant or a teacher, which were the only three reasonable options offered by the University of Northwestern Ohio or the Ohio State University.

He went with _lawyer_ solely by elimination – he was not a big fan of hospitals and he liked tutoring kids, but only one at the time – and he wasn't really expecting to love his job, just not to hate it. His expectations were really low and, most importantly, he really didn't care. He didn't have a passion, like Adam, or a mission, like Annie. He just wanted to do _something_ , it didn't matter what.

Writing wasn't a choice either.

He started because he needed to – putting things on paper was the only way he could express some of the most complex feelings he had about what had happened with Blaine – and then he never stopped. After his first novel he truly understood what his best friends already knew. He had loved creating a whole world and writing a story about it. He could easily see himself doing that for the rest of his life. He badly wanted to. At some point, around the time his agent Mark proposed him a contract for three books, Leo was so excited about it, that Blaine started to worry because he knew that if something had gone wrong, that would have crushed him.

Now, with the sole exception of Blaine and sex, writing is definitely his favorite thing. It doesn't feel like a job to him at all and, to Mark's dismay, he doesn't approach it as such. Luckily for everybody involved, he compensates with enthusiasm and largely appreciated books what he lacks in professionalism.

He not only likes the act of writing, but everything that comes with it that it's not promotion – that is a big no no. Too many people, too much time away from home, too many work meetings. He loves his readers and he loves to play with and for them. He's always available to meet them or sign hundreds of copies to ship off (the chance of writing random silly stuff every twenty books or so is worth getting his hand numb), he constantly shares with them details of his life and there's no silly challenge, friendly round table or event he doesn't participate in if he can.

So, nobody is surprised when he agrees to be part of _The Shorter Way_ , a charity event virtually hosted by Mark's publishing house to raise money for several hospitals across the country. He's supposed to write a very short story by hand. The page will be auctioned and the proceeds donated to the clinics. This is not the first time he does something like that. Between signed books, short stories, pictures and even a dinner once, he must have sold at least ten pieces of himself.

What is surprising is that two hours from the event he's still sitting on the couch playing video games. Or at least Blaine thinks that is a video game. It's hard to say these days. Sometimes Leo's wandering about on a deserted island looking for clues, sometimes he's killing monsters. Sometimes, like now, he is just building virtual houses for virtual people speaking gibberish.

“Aren't you supposed to attend that charity event?” He asks, walking in the living room with a cup of pomegranate tea in his hands.

Leo smells the air like a puppy and then nods towards the cup, which Blaine promptly offers him. “What time is it?”

“Five o'clock, I think.”

“I've got time,” Leo says, going back to his game. “I want to finish the mansion first.”

“Did you already write whatever it was that you had to write?” Blaine sits down next to him. “I'm sorry, I think I've lost track of all the things you were booked for this week. You've been pretty busy.”

Leo keeps looking at the screen but he smiles to let him know he's listening. “Don't sound so surprised. I do work sometimes.”

“Oh, I know that. You just don't do it five days in a row.”

Leo chuckles. “True,” he admits. “But this time it was different, they were fun things.”

Blaine takes a sip of his tea. He likes to watch someone play video games even less than he likes playing video games, but he loves to watch Leo as he plays because he can finally lose himself in the details of his husband's body instead of having to remember them. “So what did you write this time?”

“I didn't,” Leo deletes a chimney just to put it back a few inches to the right. It's a constant adding and taking away, over and over for each and every room. 

“I'm not following you, kid,” Blaine puts down the cup of tea on the coffee table, frowning a little. His usual worried expression of when he senses, or suspects, that Leo is doing something that he's not supposed to. “Should I be worried?”

In all his breakdowns, Leo has fallen back into depression several times, even if temporarily, but that has never affected his work. In fact, writing has always been the only thing he does even when he's not okay. But there's always a first time for everything and Blaine took it upon himself to always – always! – watch out for the signs.

Leo chuckles. “No, I swear. I know what to write, it won't take long,” he explains. Then his third, no fourth, attempt of building a staircase fails and he sighs. “God, I hate this new system. I don't understand. What was wrong with the old one? It took five seconds to build a flight of stairs. Now you need an engineering degree.”

“You're speaking in tongues.”

“Ah, nevermind,” Leo turns the video game off. “Give me that piece of paper, will you.”

Blaine grabs the notepad next to the phone. “Aren't you supposed to write on something official?”

“Not necessarily.” Leo retrieves one of Logan's felt-tip pens, from between the couch's pillows and starts scribbling quickly. “The whole point is to have something of mine written in the spur of a moment in my own hand. This is going to work just fine. See? There are even the marks of something you wrote on the previous sheet. They're going to go nuts trying to decipher it.”

“Our exciting grocery list?”

“Or the kids' dentist appointment. You name it,” Leo nods. He adds a few more words, a period and his signature. “Here, done. With more than an hour to spare.”

“Can I?”

Leo nods.

_It was a quiet day, made even more silent by the snow. It was hard to believe that in a few moments, he would experience death._

_The novice was enjoying that forbidden encounter, offering his unconsciously sensual smile to the man as he squirmed lovely under his touch. He was pure and innocent, completely unaware of the effect he had on him._

_The man had gentle eyes and beautiful hands. He didn't look dangerous at all. Not even the strength of his hands concerned him. He should have sensed the danger, but he was too lost in pleasure, blinded by it._

_The last thing he saw was dawn coming down on him. Then, his life slipped away._

_Only his dearest knight was going to weep for him._

Blaine looks up with a frowns. “Wait a second. Is this novice the same novice of your saga?

Leo chuckles. “Yes. Nice of you to recognize him despite the brief description.”

“It's not that hard. He's always naked or making out with someone.”

“True that,” Leo laughs. “We all like him that way.”

“Is this going to be canon?” Blaine points to the piece of paper. “I mean, are you going to put this in an actual book?”

Leo nods. “The very next one,” he confirms.

“Did you speak with Mark about this?” Blaine asks and he looks even more concerned than before. Leo knows that Blaine cares about Mark's mental well being as much as he cares for his. He always tries to avoid the man a headache or worse.

“No, I didn't.”

“He will freak out, Leo,” Blaine goes on, well aware of what kind of control-freak Mark can be with the details of future books Leo leaks out, and reasonably so.

“Yes, he will.”

“You don't seem concerned, love, but you should,” Blaine tries the way of tenderness. He doesn't want to fight. “Keep in mind that there are policies and rules behind all this. You can't just go and make spoilers—“

Leo gives him a quick kiss and stands up, taking back the piece of paper from his hands. “This is not a spoiler, this is baiting,” he reassures him. “If I ever kill him, it'll be unexpected and cruel, and most certainly senseless. This little story, on the other hand, is just teasing. It will stir them all up, they're going to talk about it for months.”

“You're mean, you know that?” Blaine watches him as he walks upstairs. “Both with your readers and with that poor man.”

“It's for a good cause!” Leo protests.

“Right, the hospitals.”

“I was talking about my amusement,” Leo grins. “But, yeah, the hospitals work too.”

Blaine can feel a storm coming up ahead – maybe not a hurricane, but a little whirlwind for sure – it's nice, for once, not to be the one in charge of dealing with it. It's Mark's problem, this one, he can keep enjoying his pomegranate tea.


End file.
